LaptopScreen.Com blog-site

Monday, May 31, 2010

Fujitsu LifeBook AH550 Notebook




* Intel® CoreTM i3-330M Processor (2.13 GHz, 3 MB L3 cache, 1066 MHz FSB)
* Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64 bit)
* 15.6" (1366x768) LED-backlit display
* Intel HD graphics with up to 1.6 GB of shared video memory
* 4 GB DDR3 1066 MHz SDRAM memory (2 GB + 2 GB)
* 500 GB S-ATA, 5400 rpm hard drive
* Dual-Layer Multi-Format DVD Writer
* Integrated webcam and digital microphone
* Gigabit Ethernet LAN
* Integrated Atheros XSPANR 802.11BGN (802.11 b/g/n) wireless
* Integrated Bluetooth
* HDMI, four USB 2.0 ports, MemoryStick®/SD slot, ExpressCard® slot
* Main battery: Lithium ion (6-cell, 10.8V, 4000 mAh)
* Standard spill-resistant keyboard with separate numeric 10-Key keypad
* Price $749

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Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Fixing a Broken Laptop Screen Yourself is Easier Than You Think

Laptop screen problems can be different. It may be easy fixable or may require certain efforts. Some LCD screen issues can be resolved by cleaning or running software, others replacing with a new LCD panel in worst-case scenario. Anyway, the first step is to define what type of problem your screen has.

First of all, if your LCD screen has small black spots it can be just a dirt. In this case you will need to clean the screen. It is better to use distilled water (or tap water, at last resort) but not a solvent. Shut down your laptop before cleaning. Using a lint-free microfiber cloth is best, an old cloth can introduce dust. Finally, dry the screen with a dry cloth.

If small black spots did not disappear after cleaning or the spots are white or colorized, it is quite possible that the screen has faulty pixels. Faulty pixels can be different by nature. According to a typical classification, they can be stuck, hot, and dead. And consequently, they require different approaches to fix. At times, stuck pixels may start working with time again. Sometimes such pixels can be re-energized by turning them on and off rapidly (you can try to use some pixels-fixing software tools).

You may find many different advices on the Internet how to deal with faulty pixels. Some of them are worth to try, others may damage the screen (for instance, using an excessive heat). Anyway, it is better to try different approaches to fix these pixels (at least to make sure that the only one option is left). Unfortunately, if your srceen has a dead or a partially dead pixels, in most cases there is nothing that you can do about it other than replacing your LCD screen with a new panel.

LCD screens are more fragile than old CRTs and faulty pixels can be easily contributed by users if pressure is put upon screen. As well as, the screen may have scratches. Some people try CD scratch remover but as a rule it makes the screen worse. The matter of fact, every LCD panel has a coating on top of the actual screen, this is what is scratched. Unfortunately, it can not be repaired. If your screen has many scratches, looks too ugly, then the most radical solution would be to replace the screen.

In case of dark screen, flicker, stripes, or other image problem, the first step should be to make sure that this is a screen problem, not other laptop's part. Therefore, it is necessary to check if other parts of laptop work. The easiest way is just to connect an external monitor through video output. If picture is good it means the laptop screen is non-functional or broken.

In case of dimmed screen or flicker it might be broken inverter or back-light bulb (that causes flicker). The back-light lamp is mounted inside the screen. When the back-light lamp fails, you have to replace the whole LCD screen (it is possible to replace only the lamp but very hard). All screen parts are supplied in one module that can be replaced.

If your screen is not repairable, a good cost-effective solution could be to replace the screen on your own. Are non-technical people capable to replace a laptop screen themselves? Evidently, yes. No doubt that most people are scared to change their laptop screen first time. But replacing LCD screen is easy. It is only slightly more difficult than changing a light-bulb: removing 6 screws, pulling off a bezel, disconnecting the old screen, and the installation of the new screen by following steps in reverse order. You may learn from some on-line illustrated guide how to replace LCD screen.

Since most laptop manufacturers charge too much, search for a good online store-retailer for your screen replacement (it should be within $50-150 depending on model). Some places carry a big inventory of brand new LCD panels to replace any notebook screen. If you are unable to find a particular model listed on their website, call or email them to find a screen replacement for your laptop.

© Alex Smartson. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

How to Choose The Best Laptop and its Manufacturer

Buying a laptop is an investment and it can be a difficult decision. To get most from your investment, you need to choose right features and options. On the other hand, it is important to select a good quality system that will last for years. This article is to help to find approaches that may ease the process of choosing the best laptop for you.

If you ask any expert what laptop is the best in terms of quality, normally you get different answers. One of the reasons is that every user has different experience. Another reason is that each user experienced good or bad things with laptops in different times. In fact, there is no laptop model that was always positioned at the top of the list. This is one of difficulties in choosing a laptop with the best quality.

It is easy to notice that comparison in terms of the quality or reliability of laptops (manufacturers) is very similar to the comparison of any hi-tech devices, like, TV-sets, cellular phones, as well as, automobiles. New ideas, inventions, and technologies enable human-made things to evolve very fast and in different directions. Evidently, discovering similar underlying principles may help to ease a selective process.

Firstly, we need to accept an important fact why in eyes of different people the best models are different. The quality can be different for the same model because it depends on criteria that are set by evaluator. Secondly, nowadays there is a wide variety of laptops, such as, mini, netbook, desktop replacement, therefore, the comparison may be similar to comparing apples and oranges. Thirdly, the quality can be relative thing to a certain extend even without a sound basis because particular models may be preferable for some users due to an emotional attachment, not logical objective reasons.

Anyway, the good news is that the number of laptop manufacturers is not so big and there are almost the same major ones for a decade. Currently these are Dell, HP Compaq, Toshiba, Acer, Lenovo (IBM), Sony, Gateway, Apple, Asus, Samsung, Panasonic, Fujitsu. The existence of many manufacturers is good because it means a stronger competition. A honest competition helps to create a perfect product otherwise monopoly would eventually lead to the degradation of quality.

Concerning particular models, if we define an average notebook in terms of performance and screen size it could be easy to build the list of models that are considered by most users as the best. For business needs, for example, the list could consists of such models as Lenovo ThinkPad, Sony VAIO Z Series, Dell Studio, HP Pavilion, Gateway NV7915u, Toshiba Satellite, Asus UL30VT. Please note, this list may change as time goes by, so that in 2011 this list should be updated.

© Alex Smartson. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Lenovo ThinkPad Edge 15" with Intel Processor

ThinkPad Edge 15" is affordable laptop for entrepreneurs and small IT budgets. System components:

  • IntelR CoreT i3-330M Processor ( 2.13GHz 1066MHz 3MB )
  • 15.6" AntiGlare 1366x768 LED backlit widescreen
  • Intel HD Graphics
  • 3 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz
  • HD 320GB 7200
  • DVD Recordable (Dual Layer)
  • 6 Cell Lithium-Ion
  • Intel Wireless Wi-Fi Link 1000
  • Bluetooth, plenty of ports and slots for expansion
  • Multitouch touchpad for easy zooming, rotating and scrolling
  • Streamlined, spill-resistant keyboard
  • Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64
  • Price $729.00


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Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Lenovo Introduced new IdeaPad Z360/Z560/Z565




Lenovo Z Series laptops are all an about updated look, feel and features. Zero embarrassment-factor with these. Z Series laptops are a natural fit anywhere.

* LED 16:9 displays, not lower-end LCD panels.
* DolbyR stereo surround sound and two 2 inch quality speakers.
* Premium hi-def NVIDIA graphics.
* Plenty of ports.
* Full HD support for flawless video and audio playback.
* Thin, light and very portable for day and night.
* High-end look with a nice, low price.
* Trendy design with a cool, metallic-like finish.
* Refined style, smooth edges and gorgeous screen options.
* The best wireless - WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G connectivity.
* Trim and thin-no bulky, heavy laptop to lug around.

New IdeaPad Z Series models will be available starting in June 2010.

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Friday, May 7, 2010

Comparative Analysis: Different Types of Laptops

Now computers are important part of the life for many people. Computers can be different: mobile, stationary, special, universal, and so on. For a regular user, there are two major types of computers: desktop and laptop (notebook). Notebook mobility enables you to move around freely and easily while holding or using a laptop. These days, laptop manufacturers make a wide range of different types of laptops – thin/light, portable, ultra-portable, netbooks, desktop replacements, etc. The performance of current high-end notebook is sufficient for running most applications fluently.

A thin and light laptop is almost the same as regular one but optimized in terms of weight and size. These systems can vary widely in terms of their price and performance. They are able to perform most computing tasks on a certain level. They tend to perform better than the counterparts in the ultraportable category but they are smaller and more portable than regular notebooks (although may have the same LCD panel size) and large desktop replacements. These systems are designed for those people who travel a lot, who want a system that is simple and useful enough, and who are willing to sacrifice computing power for portability.

The type of mini notebook, ultraportable laptop computer (sometimes, called subnotebook) is smaller and lighter than a typical notebook. It is able to run a normal desktop operating system. Subnotebooks often have smaller LCD screens, less than 14 inches. Usually smaller size and weight are achieved by omitting ports or having removable disc drives. However, most of them can be paired with docking stations and become as fully-functional notebooks.

There are mini notebooks with a new concept, commonly called netbooks, that are less expensive than subnotebooks and optimized for use as portable Internet capable devices. Netbooks made compact as possible yet powerful enough for most common applications such as web browsers, e-mail, word processing, presentation and other simple software. ASUS EEE PC was the first of a new class of netbooks.

A few years ago it was unimaginable that notebooks could come close to the performance of desktops. Nevertheless, current top technologies allow making your notebook performance almost equal to the performance of a desktop. The notebooks that called “desktop replacement notebooks” are designed to be complete systems that have almost equivalent processing power and capability to desktop systems but in a mobile package. Current high-end desktop replacement notebooks should be capable of replacing a desktop computers in many areas soon. Their performance is getting close to desktop performance. However, their cost is greater and they are larger and bulkier than regular notebooks.

Comparing laptops and desktops, we need to note that laptop processors (CPU) differ from their desktop counterparts. The reasons for this is a limited amount of power they have to run and difficulties to provide a good temperature conditions. To do this, the manufacturers use different tricks such as CPU scaling where a processor scales its power usage (and consequently, performance) to the tasks. This presents a major challenge in balanced performance and power consumption. The less power the laptop uses, the longer the system should be able to run on batteries.

Another disadvantage of using laptops is that laptop's keyboard and mouse may be not so convenient as it is with desktop. Also an extra-big screen size may be the most important parameter for some types of works. Therefore, the desktops that have been specially designed as servers, or ones for professional video processing, complex computing, scientific research, may never be replaced by notebooks. To this end, desktop replacement notebooks may never be the same as the top-end desktops.

© Alex Smartson. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Most Popular Laptops for April 2010

Each month NotebookReview.Com compiles data for the number of times a particular notebook is viewed on their site's product pages to get an idea for what mainstream consumers are looking at and thinking about buying. While these laptops are not necessarily the most popular in terms of sales, they are the most popular based on the number of times the visitors clicked on them. The Lenovo G550 still holds the most popular spot as one of our preferred value notebooks by a wide margin. The Dell Studio XPS 16 moved up to #2 and the ASUS G73JH gaming notebook moving up to #4. Two newcomers this month are the Lenovo ThinkPad Edge 14 and Lenovo ThinkPad X100e taking the #9 and #10 spots respectively.

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Monday, May 3, 2010

Cheap Netbooks Attract fewer Buyers: Users Need more Computing Power

Many consumers search for laptops with more computing power than the compact portable netbooks. They are willing to pay more for laptops with bigger displays and circuitry suited for jobs like manipulating photos and video, which is beyond the capability of most netbooks. Microsoft's report in the first quarter indicates that laptop sales in the $550 to $850 range grew faster than the 35% year-over-year growth in overall Windows unit sales to consumers.

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